HP TouchPad price drop goes permanent (update: confirmed)

Pricing has long been one of our biggest concerns with HP's webOS-tastic TouchPad. So, when the company offered up a $100 discount on the slate, things certainly seemed headed in the right direction. The drop was only tease, sadly, and the price went right back to normal levels two days later. Apparently consumers liked the price cut as well, and HP, in turn, liked that, moving the company to implement the reduction on a more permanent basis. This is according to a reported internal memo from the company highlighting the decision to permanently price the 16GB and 32GB WiFi versions of the tablet at $399 and $499 "effective immediately."

Update: We just heard back from an HP representative, who confirmed the pricing is indeed legit and in fact is in effect on HP's site.